| Domino | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Sire | Himyar |
| Grandsire | Alarm |
| Dam | Mannie Gray |
| Damsire | Enquirer |
| Sex | Stallion |
| Foaled | 1891 (1891) |
| Died | 1897 (aged 5–6) |
| Country | United States |
| Color | Dark Brown |
| Breeder | Barak G. Thomas |
| Owner | James R. Keene &Foxhall Keene |
| Trainer | William Lakeland |
| Record | 25: 19–2–1 |
| Earnings | $193,550 |
| Major wins | |
| Great American Stakes (1893) Great Eclipse Stakes (1893) Matron Stakes (1893) Futurity Stakes (1893) Great Trial Stakes (1893) Hyde Park Stakes (1893) Withers Mile (1894) Culver Handicap (1894) Flying Handicap (1894) Ocean Handicap (1894) Coney Island Handicapp (1895) Sheepshead Bay Handicap (1895) | |
| Awards | |
| American Champion Two-Year-Old Colt (1893) United States Horse of the Year (1893) | |
| Honors | |
| United States Racing Hall of Fame (1955) | |
| Last updated on March 12, 2010 | |
Domino (1891–1897) was a 19th-centuryAmericanthoroughbredrace horse.
A dark brown, almost black,colt, Domino was sired by Himyar out of the mare Mannie Gray.Sam Hildreth writes in his bookThe Spell of the Turf that the colt looked black but was actually a deepchestnut. Himyar was out of speed horse Alarm who'd inherited this speed from the greatEclipse. Domino, who also inherited that speed, was foaled atMajor Barak Thomas'sDixiana Farm inLexington, Kentucky.[1] What he did not have was stamina.
Owned byJames R. Keene, he was purchased as a yearling for $3,000 by his son,Foxhall Keene. Domino was trained byWilliam Lakeland and ridden byjockeyFred Taral, whom Domino hated for his rough style and copious use of whip and spur.[2]
At the age of two, he won the Great Eclipse Stakes, theGreat American Stakes, theGreat Trial Stakes, theHyde Park Stakes, theMatron Stakes, the Monmouth Park Produce Stakes, and the prestigiousFuturity Stakes.[3]
TheFuturity Stakes marked the beginning of Domino's hatred for Taral.[4] During the running, Domino's stablemate fell, and Domino, trying to avoid him, nearly went down as well. Taral whipped Domino mercilessly as a result, and then, when a colt named Dobbins challenged him, Taral went for the whip again. A newspaper article, while dramatic, described the race as follows:
"Once, twice, thrice, the lash descended on Domino's quivering flanks, but still Dobbins crept nearer and nearer...A furlong from home Dobbins' muzzle showed ahead. Taral shifted his whip from his right to his left hand and played a tattoo on Domino's ribs that could be heard half a mile away. His heels were busy, and Domino's sides ran blood...The game colt that had never known defeat, struggled on, and 100 yards from the finish there was not a man alive capable of predicting the winner."
By now, people called him "The Black Whirlwind". About this time heats no longer dominated horse races in America (they'd fallen out of favor inEngland decades earlier), and speed was becoming a premium. Domino was considered the fastest sprinter of his time.[5]
In his first start at age three in theWithers Stakes, Domino defeated theBelmont Stakes championHenry of Navarre, and went on to win five of the next seven races he entered including adead heat with arch rival Henry of Navarre in a match race sometimes referred to as the Third Special. As such, they met again three weeks later in a race to determine the 1894 championship. For this event, the 4-year-oldClifford joined the two younger colts. This time, Henry of Navarre won by 3/4's of a length, earning Horse of the Year honors.[6]
At three, besides the Withers, he won theCulver andOcean Handicaps plus theFlying Handicap in which he carried 130 pounds while setting a newtrack record.
Raced as a four-year-old, Domino won four of eight races: theConey Island Handicap, theSheepshead Bay Handicap, and came in 2nd in theFall Handicap carrying 133 lb., conceding 24 lb to the winner.
Slightly unsound, and always raced in bandages, in his 25 starts, Domino won 19, placed in 2, and came third in one. His life career earnings amounted to $193,550.
Eventually refusing to train due to a bad foot, at the end of the 1895 season, he was retired toCastleton Stud.
Domino had produced only twenty foals when at age six (July 29, 1897) he died unexpectedly of spinal meningitis. However, this diagnosis is still disputed today. Known for being a gentle, but playful horse, Domino would rear and paw the air upon being turned out in his paddock, lending credibility to the claim that he slipped and fell, thus breaking his neck. Despite his short time as a sire, of Domino's twenty foals eight werestakes race winners, an incredible 42% rate versus the industry norm of just 3%. (Only four colts were not gelded.) Included among them wasCap and Bells, the first American-bred to win theEpsom Oaks, and Belmont Stakes winner and two-time Horse of the YearCommando, who in turn sired a number of top horses one of whom washall of famer,Colin. Today, many thoroughbred race horses trace their lineage to Domino. Some of his most famous descendants wereWar Admiral,Personal Ensign,Buckpasser,Zenyatta,Secretariat,Seattle Slew,Affirmed,Bold Ruler,Assault,Whirlaway,Gallant Fox,Omaha,Native Dancer,American Pharoah,[7] and Justify. Ten of the 13 Triple Crown winners have Domino in their pedigree.[citation needed]
Domino was one of the first handful of horses inducted into theNational Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1955. His owner had his headstone engraved: "Here lies the fleetest runner the American turf has ever known, and the gamest and most generous of horses."
| Sire Himyar | Alarm | Eclipse | Orlando |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gaze | |||
| Maud | Stockwell | ||
| Countess of Albemarle | |||
| Hira | Lexington | Boston | |
| Carneal | |||
| Hegira | Ambassador | ||
| Flight | |||
| Dam Mannie Gray | Enquirer | Leamington | Faugh-a-Ballagh |
| Pantaloon mare | |||
| Lida | Lexington | ||
| Lize | |||
| Lizzie G | War Dance | Lexington | |
| Reel | |||
| Lecomte mare | Lecomte | ||
| Edith (family: 23-b) |